Warning! Spoilers for Absolute Power #3!One of the core aspects ofBatman’scharacter is his need for control. Batman suffered trauma due to having no control over a tragic situation he was in, and now the darkest part of Batman’s personality has just reached one of the highest positions of control in the world.
Amanda Waller has been gathering more poweras she moves to rid the world of super-powered beings once and for all. Part of her plan has revolved around her gaining significantly more governmental control, and she finally has enough to declare her faction the Ministry of Order as its own world power, andshe’s appointed Failsafe as its Commander-in-Chief, as he announced inAbsolute Power#3 by Mark Waid and Dan Mora.
As foreign countries begin to set their sights on the United States after Waller’s kidnapping of their superheroes, Failsafe announces that Waller is above the United States and is practically a nation all her own now.Failsafe now holds a title typically reserved for the President of the United States.
Batman Has Always Desired Control
But Now Failsafe Has It
The Wayne murderscompletely traumatized a young Bruce Wayne. He was a young child, and he had no way to save his parents. This event gave him a lot of deep-rooted trauma revolving around guns and death, but also control.Batman is famous for his contingency plansand many people say this is because of his distrust of other people, but it goes deeper than that. DuringAdventures of Superman#642 by Greg Rucka and Derec Aucoin, Superman nearly murders Batman while mind-controlled, and Batman was completely powerless to stop him. Bruce created these contingency plans to regain a sense of control.
As commander in chief, Failsafe has nearly unlimited power to do whatever he wants - on Waller’s orders.
This need for control is only amplified in the darkest part of Batman’s personality, which now residesin the android Failsafe. Failsafe is completely devoid of Batman’s humanity and only cares about the mission and bringing order to the world.This desire for pure order is again born out of Batman’s need for control.This intrinsic desire has led Failsafe to join Amanda Waller, and he’s been assigned one of the highest titles in Waller’s new government. As Commander-in-Chief, Failsafe has nearly unlimited power to do whatever he wants - on Waller’s orders.
Failsafe Wants to Control the Entire World
And He Might Achieve His Goals Thanks to Waller
A lot of characters in the DC Multiverse have been presidents or high-ranking in the government - like Lex Luthor and Calvin Ellis, just to name two - but never Bruce Wayne. This twisted version of Batman becoming the Commander-in-Chief of Waller’s new state is the closest fans will ever get to seeing a Bruce Wayne in office, and that’s likely for the best. With Batman’s inherent need for control, and seeing just how much damage Failsafe is doing with his new role, maybe aBatmanpresident is something the world just doesn’t need.
ABSOLUTE POWER #3 (2024)
Batman
One of DC’s most iconic heroes, Batman is the vigilante superhero persona of billionaire Bruce Wayne. Forged by tragedy with the death of his parents, Bruce dedicated his life to becoming the world’s leading martial artist, detective, and tactician. Recruiting an entire family of allies and sidekicks, Bruce wages war on evil as the dark knight of his hometown, Gotham City.
